FULL VINDICATION

Evening Post, Volume CXL, Issue 149, 21 December 1945, Page 5

FULL VINDICATION

HARBOUR DUES

HIGHER SCALE OF CHARGES The Wellington Havbe-ir Board met yesterday afternoon, ira^r the cnaiinianship of Mr. W. H. Price. to consider the further decisjmi of tho Pi ice Tribunal upon its application tor approval of increa^d charges anfl does r>ecer,?ary to safeguard the boards financial Po-ition. Wbi'.c exnrMSUiF dir«atisfaction that the Price Tribunal had not met the application in tuii— granting an increase of 30 psi cent., whereas the application h*d Jieen 37 per cent.—members of the board agreed that by its reconsidered decision the tribunal had given a complete vindication of the case presented in. July last.

Immediate steps are to be taken to give effect to the tribunal's decision, and the board hopes that the increased charges will be made operative from January 1. The consensus of opinion was that it will be-necessary to make application for a further increase at the end of the financial year, in September, 1946.

"The decision has now been given granting an increase of 301 per_ceru against our application for 37 per cent." said Mr. Price. "The latter figure was a bare minimum and leu no margin for increases in labour costs or contingencies. I felt very confident, from the information we gave to the tribunal, that our full application would be granted, especially so as our balance-sheet for the year ended last. September showed a loss of £143,000. "Since then we have been losinsr more than £450 every 24 hours, and are still losing at that rate. Our apnlication was made to the tribunal m July last, so that five months have elansed. resulting in a los: over that period also of an additional £67.000. I am satisfied that 30 per cent, will not cover our losses, and the board will have to consider seriously m what direction economies can be effected to make ends meet." A LITTLE MORE NEEDED.

The finding of the tribunal absolutely vindicated the case presented by the board in the first instance, said Mr, W. Appleton. The financial position at the end of the board's year was exactly what the board had forecast to the tribunal, and the tribunal clearly acknowledged the case that had been made. The board had not increased its charges since 1937, and they would still be the lowest in Australasia, even with the increases; it had been said that they were the lowest in the world for comparable services. His personal opinion was that a 33 1-3 per cent, increase, together with certain economies and adiustments on interest charges, would have allowed the board to get through: interest rates on new loans would be lower than on former loans. He was convinced, however, that they would need an increase of 33 1-3 per cent, to break even, and that unless there was some very material alteiation in the accounts 'at the end of the financial year the board would have to po bacK to the tribunal and seek another increase It was most unfortunate that the figures were not recognised as they had now been recognised when they were put forward in July, and it was no compliment to the board to say that they should have to encroach upon their reserves, which were urgently required for deferred works. In fact very little additional information had been placed before the Price Tribunal, said Mr. R. L. Macalister. The board wan not endeavouring to make any profit, but to ensure that it did not make a loss, and was entitled to a much more sympathetic hearing than in fact it had received from the Tribunal. In August the Tribunal had stated that an increase m cargo tonnage handled would result in an improvement in the board's finances: now such a complete _ reversal had been made that one might ask whether the matter was given the consideration it deserved. He did not think it had and a heavy day to day loss had been incurred while the bungling went on. "The policy seems to have been to let anyone who h^d money live on his own fat—and the board has been skinned." Mr. Macalister agreed that the board should make further application in the light of figures disclosed by the accounts, for the only way in which the loss could be made up was by an increase in charges.

ENCOURAGING UNSOUND METHODS. The amazing thing about the, Tribunal's attitude was that it encouraged an unsound' handling of public body affairs, said Sir Charles Norwood. The Tribunal gave the board an increase of 30 per cent., and at the same time told the board that that would involve it in a loss. He suggested that, the board's officers should be instructed to inquire very carefully into possible economies and it might be that they would have to sacrifice some part of the board's services to bring about necessary economies; it was their responsibility to face up to the position, whatever it might be. There was a clear case for more than the Tribunal had allowed, but they were calmly told that they should dissolve their reserves, and for the first time in the history of the port they were a little behind with port requirements and with depleted finances. They had to hold on to as much as their reserves as they possibly could. The board had throughout exercised economy as well as foresight, said Mr. T. R. Barrer; now they were faced with the necessity of curtailing expenditure until the loss incurred had been overtaken. UP THE SPIRAL. Mr. J. W. Andrews deplored the necessity of speeding up the spiral of increasing costs and said that he would much rather have preferred a move to stabilised costs and prices, if that had been possible; it was not possible, and he foresaw al§o the necessity of going to the Tribunal again at the end of the financial year, next September. The Tribunal must have known full well from the first the correctness of the board's assertion that every ton of. cargo would be handled at a loss; the board's case had been fully vindicated. The decision was an example ol very carefully prepared special pleading, but the Tribunal had simply made a case against themselves when a further application was made after September, said Mr. M. F. Luckie. The Tribunal adm'tted that a loss was being made, but said that the board should continue to make a loss that would place its finances in a precarious position—a decision that was quite indefensible. The present decision, furthermore, was in itself a condemnation of the earlier decision and an admission of the Tribunal's mistakes.

CURTAILMENT OF SERVICES. Mr. E. V. Bevan said that he would not like it to go out that the board could make good its position by seeking and applying economies, for his belief was that the operations of the board were carried • ou>. today in a fully efficient and economical manner; if the gap was to be closed in that way the board would have to curtail some of its services which -the public and payers of dues had enjoyed so long that they accepted them as of right. . It was decided to hold a special meeting on December 29 to transact formalities with the aim of giving effect to the 30 per cent, increases on January 1. There was a unanimous expression of- appreciation and thanks to the chairman and Messrs. Appleton and Macalister for the most capable manner in which they had handled the board's case before the Price Tribunal and during the long and involved discussions associated with the application and renewed application. Future Home Texas.